Fishermen and pleasure boaters use sonar instrumentation for fish finding and for determining the depth of the water. The sonar instrumentation uses a sonar transducer that emits sound waves in a conical beam, thus giving the transducer directional capabilities.
In the prior art, transducers are mounted to a boat by attachment to the bottom of the hull, to the transom, or to a trolling motor, or by mounting the transducer in the hull. The orientation of most transducers is fixed in the downward direction so that the sonar transducer scans the water directly beneath the boat.
There are many instances however, when it is desirable to scan the water laterally around the boat. For example, in fish finding applications, it is frequently easier to locate fish with side-scanning sonar than with down-scanning sonar. In depth finding applications, if the boat is near a cliff, it is frequently desirable to have side-scanning sonar capabilities to examine the underwater extent of the cliff. With prior art mounted sonar transducers, such side-scanning is impossible. What is needed then is an apparatus for mounting a sonar transducer to a boat, which apparatus will allow the transducer to scan laterally of the boat.